The effort to abolish parole release began in the 1970's and was based on arguments for a much more determinate sentencing system based on the concept of just deserts. Nevertheless, 38 states retain parole release discretion in some form. The movement to abolish parole appears to have peaked, and some reversal of the flow of discretion away from parole boards has occurred. In addition, prison overcrowding has received much attention, giving the parole community some time to make changes that will allow it to continue. Recent changes include the move toward professional parole boards, the accreditation of many paroling authorities, research and progress in decisionmaking technology, and expansion of previous roles. Current challenges include the need for explicit policy for release decisionmaking in situations involving prison overcrowding, the need to address huge workloads, the role of discretion, risk management, and legal liability. To address these challenges, teamwork, goal setting, clarification of roles, strategic thinking, linkages between release decisions and supervision, finding resources, and building a constituency for discretionary parole release will all be needed. 22 references